Round 1 process
Advertisements were placed in a number of newspapers covering East, Central and Southern Africa inviting the submission of RIU Best Bets concept notes. Applicants were asked to state how much financial support they were seeking from RIU, but no limits were stated.
Concept notes were required to address four criteria:
By the deadline for submissions in early October 2009, RIU had received 105 concept notes. These were screened in a process in which RIU was assisted by the London-based Cambridge Economic Policy Associates (CEPA) - an economic and financial policy advisory business. An initial short-list of 11 proposals was developed.
In two cases, pairs of proposals that appeared to offer significant opportunity for synergy (an armyworm forecasting system and an armyworm control technology; and two aquaculture proposals) were invited to amalgamate their proposals.
In another case, a proposal to develop a value chain for cassava flour, in which the flour would used as the raw material for a new type of beer, has been put on hold. Although the proposal was highly rated by all the reviewers, guidance is being sought from DFID as there may be conflict with its policy on supporting alcohol-related activities.
The surviving eight applicants were each asked to write a business plan following a format provided by RIU. To facilitate this, a grant of US$ 2500 was made available which teams used in various ways, such as to bring team members together to enable them to work jointly on their plans. Two representatives from each proposal were also supported to attend the RIU Best Bets event in Nairobi on 26 and 27 November 2009.
At the Best Bets event, two representatives of each of the shortlisted proposals presented their idea to an independent panel drawn from leaders in the African business, finance and research and development communities. The panellists had already read the business plans. Following a 10-minute oral presentation, panellists had 20 minutes to interrogate the proposal, followed by a further 10 minutes in private to discuss the proposal amongst themselves. At the end of the day, the panel announced the proposals they recommended that RIU should support. Subject to due diligence, which was carried out during December by CEPA, RIU accepted these recommendations and proceed to issuing contracts.
Advertisements were placed in a number of newspapers covering East, Central and Southern Africa inviting the submission of RIU Best Bets concept notes. Applicants were asked to state how much financial support they were seeking from RIU, but no limits were stated.
Concept notes were required to address four criteria:
- The proposal should be grounded in rigorous research in agriculture, including fisheries and forestry.
- The originators of the research should be involved in the programme in a significant way so that they are able to apply their tacit knowledge and learning to the programme.
- The proposal will be expected to achieve significant development impact at scale in East and/or Central Africa (and perhaps beyond).
- The proposal should comprise a consortium of partners (e.g. academic, public sector, NGO) led by an African institution and should include a private sector partner with evidence of support, which could be financial or in kind.
By the deadline for submissions in early October 2009, RIU had received 105 concept notes. These were screened in a process in which RIU was assisted by the London-based Cambridge Economic Policy Associates (CEPA) - an economic and financial policy advisory business. An initial short-list of 11 proposals was developed.
In two cases, pairs of proposals that appeared to offer significant opportunity for synergy (an armyworm forecasting system and an armyworm control technology; and two aquaculture proposals) were invited to amalgamate their proposals.
In another case, a proposal to develop a value chain for cassava flour, in which the flour would used as the raw material for a new type of beer, has been put on hold. Although the proposal was highly rated by all the reviewers, guidance is being sought from DFID as there may be conflict with its policy on supporting alcohol-related activities.
The surviving eight applicants were each asked to write a business plan following a format provided by RIU. To facilitate this, a grant of US$ 2500 was made available which teams used in various ways, such as to bring team members together to enable them to work jointly on their plans. Two representatives from each proposal were also supported to attend the RIU Best Bets event in Nairobi on 26 and 27 November 2009.
At the Best Bets event, two representatives of each of the shortlisted proposals presented their idea to an independent panel drawn from leaders in the African business, finance and research and development communities. The panellists had already read the business plans. Following a 10-minute oral presentation, panellists had 20 minutes to interrogate the proposal, followed by a further 10 minutes in private to discuss the proposal amongst themselves. At the end of the day, the panel announced the proposals they recommended that RIU should support. Subject to due diligence, which was carried out during December by CEPA, RIU accepted these recommendations and proceed to issuing contracts.
| Successful presenters at the Best Bets event in East Africa talk about the awards process. November 2009 |
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